Golf Peaks (Switch) Review – Puzzling Putting

Golf Peaks is not juts a golf game. Not really. It features a golf ball, a putter and a hole and definitely will help for game improvement. Instead, Golf Peaks is a wonderful puzzle title.

Originally released for smartphones and ported to Switch, Golf Peaks tasks you with figuring out the correct order and direction to take shots. Each hole is set at an isometric viewpoint and you’re given a set number of shots to sink the ball.

Again. Not a golf game.

These set shots are displayed at the bottom of your screen as cards. Each card includes a type of shot and a distance indicator. Some shots travel three squares across the ground. Other might jump one square then roll another two. There are a tonne of different types of shots and the puzzle comes from figuring out which shot to use and which direction to use it in.

Golf Peaks Review

As with most puzzle games, Golf Peaks starts out fairly easy and ramps up from there. There are 109 levels set across a number of worlds and each comes with its own new mechanic.

For instance, early in the game, you’re introduced to sand traps. Should your ball roll onto a sand trap it will come to a complete stop. You won’t even be able to move the ball again unless you have a shot card that lifts your ball into the air.

Other mechanics include jump pads, quicksand, water hazards, ice and wormholes.

Most levels don’t take too long to get through, though a few definitely stumped me. One, in particular, kept me scratching my head for a good half hour.

Hole in Several

In addition to the various mechanics, levels also include hills and gaps for you to work around.

For each level, there does seem to be a certain, set path through. However, for many of the levels, I found shorter, faster routes to the hole. This may or may not have been intentional by the devs though there’s no way to tell which levels you’ve completed in this way.

It seems like a missed opportunity as levels could have had indicators for the number of ways to be completed and given players something to chase down.

Once you finish the last level there’s sadly not much incentive to go back and play Golf Peaks again. There are three bonus levels in each world, which gives you a little more content. Not much though.

Under Par

Playing on Switch is a great way to play Golf Peaks. You’re able to use both Joy-Con and touch controls and can even use a single Joy-Con to play in portrait mode.

The visuals are clean and minimalist while the soundtrack is soothing and atmospheric which helps make playing a relaxing experience.

I managed to finish the entire game in around two hours which is pretty short, but for such a low-priced game it’s not too bad.

Golf Peaks offers some great puzzles and a nice distraction. It’s not flawless but it’s definitely worth the low price of admission.

Golf Peaks was reviewed on Switch using a digital code provided by the developer.